Electroloom spins clothing from liquid; A 3D printer for fabric

The popularity and impact of 3D printers is growing rapidly - be it in the automobile sector, medicine, food, and more. Cars, rockets, a baby's skull, and even guns have been created using this technology. With its endless usage there seems to be nothing that it can't help create. And now the technology is being used to create fabric.  

HAX-alumnus Electroloom is doing this right now; it is building a 3D printer for fabric. The company's 3D printer creates clothes without seams by spraying liquid containing a polyester and cotton blend on to molds - it actually creates fabric from scratch. The process is a vast improvement over Disney Research's 3D printer, which only cut existing fabrics into shapes.

The process used by Electroloom is called "electrospinning" which creates fabric from scratch. First, liquids (polyester and cotton blend) are turned to tiny fibers that are sprayed onto a mold and the electrical field of the machine makes the fibers bond together to create fabrics. The company is also looking to use a new silk and acrylic fabrics blend in the production process. 

The team came up with Electroloom after they found inspiration from their work on 3D-printing artificial blood vessels, at the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.

A typical print takes eight to fourteen hours in Electroloom's current prototype, Tech Crunch reported.

The time taken to make a fabric is directly related to nozzles - from where the liquid is sprayed - attached on the mold. This is so because for the fiber extraction method to work only a miniscule amount of liquid can be sprayed from the nozzles at a time, said Foley. More the nozzles less time it takes to create a fabric, he added.

The company has started a Kickstarter campaign and is asking people to pledge cash to become initial tester of the machine. The first version of Electroloom will cost $4,500. But for a $100 pledge, one can select a clothing type from the company's selection- tank top, skirt or beanie- and it will be yours.

When the Kickstarter campaign ends successfully on June 15, worldwide shipping of Electrolooms can be expected to begin by March 2016.